Aims:
- to develop speaking skills through a wide range of speaking tasks
which necessitate
giving information, exchanging and justifying opinions and ideas,
comparing and
contrasting, agreeing and disagreeing, suggesting and speculating;
- teach to analyze and arrange specific data into meaningful
patterns;
- to develop positive attitude to health.
Tasks:
- to practise and activate all essential vocabulary on the topic
"Healthy Way of
Life”;
- to provide an opportunity to use linguistic skills in real
situations of communication;
- to broaden students’ understanding of the various aspects of
healthy way of life;
- to teach to work collaboratively in group, to develop partnership
relations between
teachers and pupils;
- to stimulate and enhance the students’ interest of health problems
(Food, Bad habits,
Stress) to probe further on their own and to reach their own
conclusions based on
examining the evidence;
- to teach students critical thinking skills when searching for
information in the
Internet, additional literature;
- to develop cross-cultural and cross-curricular competence .
Type of the project:
- cross-curricular; group; short-term; with coordination.
Result of the project:
- presentation of creative and research work.
Equipment:
- computer and multimedia projector; tape recorder; self-made
posters; illustrations;
handouts.
The course of the lesson
I. (teachers) Good afternoon, dear students!
Today we are
having our final lesson on the topic "Healthy Way of Life”. For three
weeks you have
been working on the projects. Today you are going to present the result
of your joint
work. We hope that you will show your speaking skills, cooperative
skills, will show your
understanding of the proverb ‘Health is above wealth’.
As you remember, at our first lesson of this theme we held a survey
among the 11th
formers. The children chose the most vital aspects of healthy way of
life and picked out
the problems concerning their health. Having analyzed their opinion, we
found out the
following three major points: bad habits, food and stress. As far as we
have three groups
in our class, each group chose a problem for studying.
Before discussing these problems let’s look around. We see some
quotations and
sayings on the topic. Let’s read them. (the pupils read and comment
on the
quotations)
Possible Sayings and Proverbs:
- Tomorrow is another day
- A change is as good as a rest
- A sound mind in a sound body
- An apple a day keeps the doctor away
We hope your today’s presentations will prove they are true.
II. Food
2.1. Can you imagine our life without food? I think no. What is food
for us? (the
pupils give their variants)
2.2. Do you know the secrets of health and beauty? The secrets are in
our food. The
proverb says: "We are what we eat ” In this cosmic world which we live
in, the thing
we neglect all to off is nutrition. Food supplies three fundamental body
needs: need for
energy, need for new tissue growth and tissue repair, need to regulate
metabolic function.
In particular, the types of food that we eat can influence our moods.
Eating food like
bread, cereal, rice makes us feel calm. Chocolate can lift our spirits
and make us feel
happier. Other foods, such as coffee, eggs, sugar, can have a negative
effect on us. When
you feel stressed, try a little bread and a glass of milk and you will
feel relaxed.
Have you ever heard anything about junk food? I shall try to convince
you that it is
harmful for our health and stomach. In today’s fast-moving world, people
have less and
less time to spend eating, let alone cooking. It is probably for this
reason that junk
food is so popular.
Recent researches have shown that people who prefer junk food gain
excess weight. This
is true because you tend to eat more, as junk food is less satisfying
and lower in vital
nutrients.
I don’t think that you will never eat hamburgers or fried potatoes.
I’m sure you
will! But always remember about the consequences.
2.3. The problem of food is closely connected with dieting. We all
want to be slim.
We’ve got some information about dieting: whether it is a good thing or
not.
The term dieting most often refers to the revision of food intake in
order to lose
weight. Diets are also observed for a wide range of medical reasons.
What do 100 calories a day correspond to? It’s easy to feed 100
calories to the body
but difficult to burn them, as the drawings illustrate.
Variants of burning calories are:
1) 2 km walk;
2) 5 min of skiing at competition speed;
3) 4 km of cycling;
4) 15 min of tennis (easy pace);
5) 30 min of gardening.
You should count your calories if you want to have a good figure.
There are a number of problems connected with dieting. Low diets, for
example, restrict
the amount of bread, sugar, and grains while maintaining a normal amount
of proteins and
fats. Most people experience low blood pressure after only a few days on
such diets.
Diets high in fats are harmful for people with heart disease.
High proteins diets can be kept for only a short period of time and
are dangerous for
anyone with diabetes and other medical problems.
There is a serious problem of starvation, because it can lead to
coma. It can be
practiced only under strict medical supervision.
2.4. Now we’d like to acquaint you with such a disease as anorexia.
Anorexia is a new illness and seems to be caused by the society we
live in, which
judges us on our appearance. The media encourage us to try to be slim
and beautiful. Each
year there are to be at least 2000 new cases of anorexia. Most anorexics
are females in
their teens and twenties who suffer from a distorted self image: either
slim or attractive
they may appear to others. Though hungry, anorexics attempt to gain
control of their lives
by denying eating.
2.5. We are sure you know such term as vegetarianism. We’ll tell you
the history of
it and reveal the advantages and disadvantages of it.
Vegetarianism is an ancient custom. During the 19th
century the movement
began to produce results even among non-vegetarians. By the early 20th
century
it was non-vegetarian's diet - especially in English-speaking countries;
such foods as
peanut butter and corn flakes were invented by vegetarians in the United
States.
The vegetarian movement as a whole was carried forward by
individuals, such as Leo
Tolstoy and George Bernard Show, and by certain religious sects.
Humanitarian vegetarians refuse meat because they believe that
killing of animals is
unnecessary or cruel. People who are keen on vegetarianism for health
reasons believe that
meat is harmful to the human body and that vegetable diet is more
effective.
Purist vegetarians reject all foods that are derived from animals,
including dairy
products such as eggs, milk, cheese and butter.
2.6. Competition 1: You’ve got a lot of information about
food: junk food,
healthy food, dieting. Now we’ll check how well you remember it. We’ll
see which of
the two groups can choose healthy food and junk food from the pictures
on the table. (comments
of the expert)
Competition 2: Now I offer you a list of different
ingredients. Imagine that you
are waiting for a friend; you are to prepare meal as quickly as
possible. I shall give you
a minute… Now we shall see whose dish is the tastiest and healthiest. (comments
of
the expert)
2.7. I hope you will follow our advice and choose healthy food. I
wish you good meal!
And we present you with some general advice on healthy food.
General Advice on Healthy Food
1. Eat less salt, sugar and saturated fat.
2. Eat more raw fruit and vegetables, wholemeal bread and other foods
rich in fibre.
3. Check the 'Contents' labels on packets and tins to see what they
actually contain.
4. If you want to lose weight, do it gradually. People who lose
weight quickly usually
put it back on quickly, too.
5. Eat regularly - your body needs a steady flow of energy.
6. Drink five or six glasses of water per day.
7. Get plenty of variety in your diet.
8. Enjoy your food!
III. Bad Habits.
3.1. Another problem is bad habits. Can you name any bad habits (smoking,
drinking,
overeating, gambling, irritation, drug-taking).
We confess the significance of all these problems but smoking. Many
teenagers do not
consider it to be a serious problem leading to terrible consequences.
That’s why we have
decided smoking to be discussed.
3.2. If you smoke and you still don't believe that there's a definite
link between
smoking and bronchial troubles, heart disease and lung cancer, then you
are certainly
deceiving yourself. No one will accuse you of hypocrisy. Let us just say
that you are
suffering from a bad case of wishful thinking. This needn't make you too
uncomfortable
because you are in good company. Whenever the subject of smoking and
health is raised, the
governments of most countries hear no evil, see no evil and smell no
evil. Admittedly, a
few governments have taken timid measures. In Britain, for instance,
cigarette advertising
has been banned on television. The conscience of the nation is appeased,
while the
population continues to puff its way to smoky, cancerous death.
You don't have to look very far to find out why the official
reactions to medical
findings have been so lukewarm. The answer is simply money. Tobacco is a
wonderful
commodity to tax.
If the governments of the world were honestly concerned about the
welfare of their
peoples, you'd think they'd conduct aggressive anti-smoking campaigns.
Far from it! The
tobacco industry is allowed to spend staggering sums on advertising. Its
advertising is as
insidious as it is dishonest. We are never shown pictures of real
smokers coughing up
their lungs early in the morning. That would never do. The
advertisements always depict
virile, clean-shaven young men. They suggest it is manly to smoke, even
positively
healthy! Smoking is associated with the great open-air life, with
beautiful girls, true
love and togetherness. What utter nonsense!
For a start, governments could begin by banning all cigarette and
tobacco advertising
and men should conduct anti-smoking advertising campaigns of their own.
Smoking should be
banned in all public places like theatres, cinemas and restaurants.
Great efforts should
be made to inform young people especially of the dire consequences of
taking up the habit.
A horrific warning - say, a picture of a death's head - should be
included in every packet
of cigarettes that is sold. As individuals we are certainly weak, but if
governments acted
honestly and courageously, they could protect us from ourselves.
3.3. There are many smokers who are aware of the health hazards of
their habit and want
to stop, or have already tried, without success. Here is some practical
advice which may
help you to kick the habit:
You can rely on your own will-power. Simply smoke your last cigarette
and do not allow
yourself to pick up another. However, very few of us are strong-willed
enough to do this
successfully. Or you can gradually cut down on the amount you
smoke each day until
you stop entirely. Additionally, some companies manufacture products
such as chewing gum
and adhesive body patches which administer small doses of nicotine to
help combat
withdrawal symptoms. You can use these products if your will-power
requires some
assistance. Otherwise, you can benefit from other available treatments
like hypnotherapy
or acupuncture. Many people claim that after only a few sessions of alternative
therapies
such as these, they have been permanently cured of their addiction. The
only drawback,
however, is that their effectiveness seems to depend on your desire to
give up swiping.
The stronger your will-power is, the more successful the treatment will
be. When you have
stopped smoking, you should try not to begin again. You should
avoid stressful
situations, since stress often drives people to smoke again. Also, when
boredom strikes it
is often tempting to pick up a cigarette, if only for something to do.
You can prevent the
boredom which may lead to your taking up smoking again. To conclude,
there are several
ways to give up smoking, some of which are less conventional than
others. Once you
have given up, you may also have to take certain measures to
ensure that you remain
a non-smoker for good.
3.4. In conclusion we’d like to present you with one of such posters
to remind you
how dangerous smoking is not to the health of a smoker but to the
environment as well.
IV. Stress.
4.1. We are school-leavers. It’s a crucial moment of our life. We
realize our
responsibility. That’s why we get nervous as we are under constant
stress. We should
know how to cope with these problems and how to overcome them. Here is
our project
"Anti-Stress Recipes”.
4.2. Do you know what the signs of stress are?
1) "7 o’clock! Why should I get up so early?!” - If you ask yourself
this
question at least once a week, you are irritated.
2) "9 o’clock! A test! Again!” - You worry almost every day, don’t
you?
3) "1 o’clock! I can’t understand anything!” - You feel sick and
tired and
can’t concentrate on the lesson.
4) "4 o’clock! I want to sleep!” - You are gloomy – you have no time
to rest,
you have so much to do.
5) "8 o’clock! Leave me alone!” - You are tense and you don’t want to
do
anything.
Don’t any of these thoughts strike you sometimes? (comments of the
pupils).If
‘yes’ – you are on the way to stress.
Stress is a worried or nervous feeling that stops you relaxing
caused, for example, by
pressure at school or personal problems. When you are under stress, you
see life in grey
and black colours.
4.3. Let’s test ourselves in what colour's we see life, what our
outlook on life is. (test
‘What’s your outlook on life’, comments on the results)
4.4. The mind and the body are not separate. When you relax your body
you can relax
your mind. A technique of relaxation can help you when you are under
stress or just tired.
Relaxation Pause (is performed to music):
Sit comfortably. Close your eyes. Listen to your breathing.
Feel its rhythm and depth. Feel yourself breathe-in and
breathe-out.
Remember the most pleasant moment of your life. …Try to fix this
feeling. …
Thank you. Open your eyes.
A quarter of an hour of relaxation like that every day will pay you
well! You will gain
extra energy and good will towards life generally.
Now we are calm and quiet, relaxed and at ease. We are ready to
accept new information;
we hope it will be of great use for everybody.
4.5. People have had problems since the beginning of time. We’ve
already read some
proverbs that are probably thousands of years old. We are sure most of
them are useful
today.
Our modern life is really stressful. We compete at school and in
sport and even with
our friends. We try to get as good marks as possible, to buy as cool
telephone as
possible, to look as smart as possible, to go on holiday as far as
possible so that we can
relax after getting so tense and tired!
All this can’t but influence our nerves. What do you think the signs
of stress are? (comments
of the pupils: irritability, fussiness, gloominess, suspicion,
indecision,
excitability, restlessness, lack of concentration, unsociability, loss
of appetite,
over-eating, sleeplessness, drinking, smoking, worrying, tension.)
Many people try to get rid of the signs of stress instead of the
cause. They may take
sleeping pills or try to control the various signs in other ways. But
the only
satisfactory way of stopping stress is to find the cause of it.
4.6. Presentation ‘Causes of Stress’.
1) - The loss of a close person or any other loss may cause stress.
It may be the death
or illness of a friend, the loss of your job or money. And you can
probably do nothing to
change these.
- As the proverb says ‘One cannot put the clock back’. You should
concentrate on
what is happening in you life today. And go on living. Don’t try to
re-live yesterday.
It is gone.
2) – A conflict inside you may cause stress. Perhaps you feel you
ought to do
something but you don't want to. You may have mixed feelings about
someone or something
and not know what to do.
- As the proverb says ‘No man is wise at all times’. You had better
look into,
understand yourself. It may be helpful to talk to someone about it.
3) – A fear of something may cause stress. Often we are afraid to do
something,
because we don’t know what will happen afterwards. Perhaps, you are
stressed by fear you
can’t identify.
- As the proverb says ‘Don’t climb the hill before you get to it’.
You
shouldn’t be fearful because most of the things we fear never come to
pass. Do
something. It’s often better to make a decision rather than do nothing.
4) – Several different problems may cause stress. Perhaps you feel
you have too much
responsibility.
- As the proverb says ‘Little by little and bit by bit’. Try to see
your problems
separately and deal with them one by one.
5) – Worry also may cause stress. Worry refers to negative self-talk,
that often
destructs the mind from focusing on the problem of hand. Worry can refer
to a feeling of
concern about someone else’s condition.
- As the proverb says ‘Cheek brings success’. Re-define your worry as
a problem.
Then you can do something about it instead of just worrying. Do
something before things
become worse!
4.7. In conclusion we’d like to present you with some recommendations
how to avoid
stress and be happy.
10 Commandments for a Student
- Thou shalt not worry, for worry is the most
unproductive of all human
activities.
- Thou shalt not be fearful, for most of the
things we fear never come to pass.
- Thou shalt not cross bridges before you get to them,
for no one yet has
succeeded in accomplishing this.
- Thou shalt face each problem as it comes:
you can handle only one at a time
anyway.
- Thou shalt not take problems to bed with you,
for they make very poor
bedfellows.
- Thou shalt not borrow other people's problems:
they can take better care of them
than you can.
- Thou shalt not try to relive yesterday for good or
ill - it is gone. Concentrate
on what is happening in your life today.
- Thou shalt count thy blessings, never
overlooking the small ones, for a lot of
small blessings add up to a big one.
- Thou shalt be a good listener, for only when
you listen do you hear ideas
different from your own. It's very hard to learn something new when
you're talking.
- Thou shalt not become bogged down by frustration,
for 90 percent of it is rooted
in self-pity and it will only interfere with positive action.
VII. Reflexion. (teacher) Let’s segregate basic
recommendations for
preserving your health. Each group is to pick out the most useful
recommendation on each
problem of all we’ve discussed today. (teacher writes the ideas on
the blackboard)
VIII. Commenting on the work and giving marks. |